Liberty Must Focus on Intangibles Facing Elimination

Originally posted on New York Liberty on SI
By Kenny Saint-Vil | Last updated Sep 19, 2025 12:00 PM ET

Brandon Todd / NY Liberty

Everyone in sports loves the drama of a Game 7. For the New York Liberty, that moment has arrived in the form of a Game 3. Because of the WNBA’s best-of-three opening round, it’s now win and advance or lose and the season is over.

The Liberty don’t need a whiteboard full of clever Xs and Os to survive. They need resolve. They need grit. They need the kind of intangibles that don’t show up on a stat sheet but win playoff series.

After being routed by 26 points at home in Game 2, the Liberty face the Phoenix Mercury in a decisive Game 3 of their first-round playoff series. The Mercury have countered the Liberty’s sets effectively, capitalizing on turnovers and missed rotations. For the Liberty, effort plays like boxing out, diving for loose balls, staying connected on defense - may be the difference.

Head coach Sandy Brondello, who spent eight seasons leading the Mercury, returns to familiar ground with her team’s season on the line.

“We just went away from what was working for us the first game,” Brondello said. “But we know what we need to do, and now we’re going back. It’s just an elimination game. So that’s it. We just got to prepare for that. Stay confident. We’re a way better team than what we showed. And that’s what we’ll do. We’ll focus on being better.”

Brandon Todd / NY Liberty

Game 2 at Barclays was humbling. The Liberty stormed out in the opening quarter, playing the free-flowing, connected brand of basketball. They played their brand of basketball for one quarter before being outmatched the rest of the way.

“It was embarrassing,” forward Breanna Stewart said.

Brandon Todd / NY Liberty

Stewart, the 2023 MVP, has been battling a left knee injury suffered in Game 1. After avoiding major damage, she was cleared to play but was visibly limited. Stewart said the Liberty must lean on effort more than execution.

“It’s the hustle plays, the 50/50 balls, the rebounding, the turnovers,” Stewart said. “Sometimes the things that don’t show up on the stat sheet are going to be the deciding factor. We have to come with the mentality that we’re willing to do whatever it takes.”

Emma Meesseman, who came off the bench to lead New York with 11 points - the only Liberty player in double figures - echoed the urgency.

Brandon Todd / NY Liberty

“Just be more aggressive,” Meesseman said. “Get to the rim. Attack more. … We’ll make shots. We have to have confidence and give confidence to each other.”

The Liberty know what’s at stake: their title defense on the edge. Game 3 won’t be won on paper. It will be won in the moments when a player decides not to give up on a rotation, when a teammate picks up a struggling star, when five players fight as one. Intangibles will decide if they move on.

This article first appeared on New York Liberty on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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